The Tok'ra
by dragonlots
Summary: STV,SG1,SGA Xover.Story told by Sholan, the Tok'ra and what happens when they find a Stargate in the Delta quadrant.
1. Chapter 1

This is yet another older story I found. Let me know what you think of it.

The Tok'ra

Dragonlots aka Dana Bell

Humans. Of course, I shouldn't speak with such disdain, since my host is a human. How I came to be in this body was an act of mercy. The Federation knows nothing of us. Knowledge of us and the threat of the Go'uld has long since been forgotten. Has been for well over three hundred years. Yet, here I am, dwelling in the body of a Starfleet officer.

I'm on a ship called Voyager. Lost in a section of space they call Delta quadrant. Unexplored by them, but not us. We had a base here once, on a small planet just a few light years away. That was at the near end of the struggle when all seemed lost. If the Asgard hadn't…well, I try not to dwell on such things.

My host has night duty on the bridge. I will say I am impressed by the technology that allows these humans to sail through the stars. They have come quite far since we first met them.

"Hey, Lil," Harry's voice summons my host.

"Yes," she responds.

"You seem lost in thought tonight. Is everything okay?"

"Fine." I hear her thought about wishing she could tell Harry about the wondrous creature I am and the secrets we share. She knows she can't. I explained the history of our two races. She agreed to keep silent.

"Good morning everyone!" Captain Janeway greeted as she entered the bridge.

Gracious! Is it truly that late? The relieving crew comes in and we leave in the turbo lift. Lil goes to the galley and eats a hearty breakfast, plays a couple of games with friends and then goes to sleep.

I, however, don't require a lot of rest. While she sleeps I allow my memory to drift remembering days long ago. I miss many of my old friends. Most died in the struggle before the System Lords were defeated. We came to a point of near extinction ourselves. Still, there are few of us left. We are scattered and now without purpose. Maybe…no, I will not entertain the thought. I enjoy living too much.

"Will you be quiet, " Lil requests. "I'm trying to sleep."

'Sorry,' I apologize and force myself into silence. My host needs her rest.

We found the planet a few days later. Lil was invited to join the away team, lead by Captain Janeway herself. It felt good to walk in grass, even if it were a strange yellow-orange tinge. The clean air was refreshing after the vented recycled stuff we are forced to breathe.

"What do you think, Sholan?" my host asks me.

'I like it. But is seems familiar.'

"Maybe you've been here before. You did say your people traveled."

"Everything all right, ensign?" Captain Janeway called. She's eyed us strangely. I've warned Lil about verbally talking to me.

Lil laughed. "I'm fine. I was just talking to myself."

The captain's expression stated she didn't buy that explanation. I have no wish to be discovered. Yet.

"Captain!" Seven hails.

Janeway changed her attention to the half borg/half human woman.

"There is an odd," she hesitated. I guess even the borg don't have knowledge of everything. "structure. Up there." She pointed to the top of a small hill.

"Let's check it out." Janeway briskly headed in the right direction.

It took about fifteen minutes to climb the hill. At the top…no, it can not be.

Seven used the tricorder to scan the stone circle. Janeway slowly walked all the way around it, pausing now and then to study a symbol.

"Some sort of transport?" Janeway inquired. She paused before what I know to her, looks like some sort of control device. Of course, it is.

"Possibly. I have never seen anything like it," Seven replied, not glancing up from her tricorder. "Nor is there anything in my Borg memory regarding this."

"So the Borg don't know everything?" Lil teased.

"I wonder how this works," Janeway mused.

"It forms a wormhole," Lil began, before she remembered and fell silent.

"What, Ensign?"

I felt Lil bite her lip. "Nothing, captain."

"No," Janeway looked at us and I felt my host's fear mount. "You've been behaving oddly ever since you took that native cure for Mylar fever." She crossed her arms and looked down her thin nose at us. "What was in that concoction you were fed?"

'Let me answer,' I told Lil. 'Janeway will never understand otherwise.'

My host gave her consent and I made her eyes glow. Janeway jumped back her hand reaching for her phaser. "My name is Sholan," I informed her. "I am a Tok'ra."

Seven scanned us, her eyebrow raising slightly. "There is some sort of creature along Ensign Lil's spinal column."

"What?!" Janeway looked at the tricorder as if to verify what she was told.

"Your ensign was dying. There is no cure for the fever she had. My people have restorative powers. I healed her body and she agreed to allow me to reside in her. I will not harm her. Or you."

"Why have you been silent for so long?" Janeway demanded her anger flashing in her brown eyes.

"It has been a long time since your people and mine have interacted. We were allies once." I quickly deiced to tell her the whole truth. "During the late twentieth and early twenty-first century."

Janeway chuckled. "We didn't have much of a space program then. If we had contacted extraterristials, we would have known."

"No." I shook my host's head. "The Stargate project, which is what that stone object is, was classified. No one outside the military, a few scientists, and the top leaders knew."

"How does it work?" she asked.

I walked to the controls placing fingers upon the seven symbols which will dial Earth. Vaguely I wondered after all this time, if the Stargate still remained inside Cheyenne Mountain. The wormhole formed shooting its blue mass outward before settling like a blue watery mass in the iris.

"What are these cordinates?" Seven asked.

"Earth." I responded as I ran into the wormhole.

The sensation was the same. Bone chilling cold, the feeling of being stretched beyond endurance, before I emerged on the other side into total dark.

No lights, no equipment running, just the final sucking sound of the wormhole closing.

I had been here only once during the Stargate Project. I had been running messages during the final battle. Asgard ships sat in orbit protecting Earth from Go'uld pyramid vessels set on destroying them. Everything had been rushing bodies in military green, primitive weapons at the ready, and the bald general who had greeted me, taken the message and sent back a reply.

The ramp was still there. My feet followed the natural slant and I tripped on the structure and fell to the hard concrete floor. "Owww!" Forcing myself up I put my hands out in front of me and fell to the concrete floor. I finally found a cold wall and used it as a guide. My fingers slipped through an opening and I sensed it was a door. Odd. I would have thought they would have sealed it.

What I really needed was light. If I am ever to get out of here, I must find lighting and a power source for the gate. I paused in trek along the hallway. Where would I go? I didn't know the co-ordinates of the world I had just left. I couldn't return to Starfleet Head Quarters in San Francisco. There would be too many questions. Everyone would want Lil to tell them where the crew of Voyager was and how she'd gotten back. She wouldn't be able to tell them without exposing me.

After several hours I finally found a power source. How I actually managed to find Colonel Carter's lab, I have no idea. Lil seemed to think it was her God her guided us. I'm not sure what to think of her faith.

The Naquada generator still worked and I found some old style flashlights. They worked, but I had a difficult time figuring out how they turned on. It took me a bit longer to jury rig the primitive computer system.

"We could have used Tom's help," Lil complained as we labored on the project. "He likes all this old fashioned stuff."

'So, where do we go, Lil?"' I asked her.

"Anywhere. I like exploring. Just pick a planet and we'll go."

'Okay,' I answered and dialed a world my people had once inhabited. The wormhole failed to engage. I knew that meant the planet was no longer there.

"Now what?" Lil asked.

There was another possibility. 'We need to boost the power output.'

"Why?" I knew my statement puzzled her.

'Because our destination has eight symbols.'

"Just where are you taking me?"

'Atlantis.'

"Do you think there will be anyone left there?"

'I don't know.'

"Better than nothing."

Days later we had the power we needed and we dialed the eight symbols. The gate connected and the blue watery surface settled in the ring.

"Here goes nothing," Lil. She took the steps up the creaking ramp. "Ready?" she asked me.

'I am.'

Together we walked through the gate and hopefully, our new life.

Of course, I wasn't expecting the Wraith on the other side.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's note: I had never intended to continue this story. However, due to the large number of hits and the comments I've received, not to mention the number of readers who have added this to their alert list, well, why fight it. Here be the next installment.**

The Tok'ra

Dragonlots aka Dana Bell

Lily tapped her foot and gripped at me. "This wasn't part of the plan."

Through her eyes I could see the long iron bands of our prison, reinforced by an odd organic substance reminding me of a spider's web. I could feel both her irritation and fear.

'I'm sorry.'

"You said that already," she snapped back. "Now tell me about these Wraith again."

'You won't like it.'

"I already don't like it."

If I could have taken a deep breath, I would have, before again explaining to Lily about the Wraith. 'They live by feeding off the life force of humans.'

"Like vampires."

I saw the image in her mind and had to agree they were similar. 'Not quite accurate by essentially correct.'

"Oh, that's bad." She sat down on the cold floor. "Whenever you start using big words and sounding all logical like Tuvok, I know we're in trouble."

'Would you prefer I lied?'

"Of course not." She glanced around. "Any idea how we get out of here?"

'No. Our experience did not include this galaxy.'

"But you knew about the Wraith."

'Only because of our connection with the SGC.'

"Don't go over that again, it makes my head ache."

'You have training. You do not need to always depend on me.' I sounded angry and I didn't care. All she'd done was whine since we got captured.

"I'm just a lowly ensign," she returned, even as she got up and examined our prison. "I wonder if this will break." Her hands reached up and she tried to wiggle portions of the organic substance. "No. Doesn't seem likely."

'You're giving up.'

"No. Just thinking." She started humming. "Now shut up so I can."

I retreated deep into myself and allowed Lily some privacy. Over the centuries I've had many hosts. Some were easy to get along with, but others proved more difficult. I'm not sure if I am the last of my kind. Due to the humans, many of us had been killed. Not by intent, rather by being in the wrong place at the wrong time. The SGC did a very good job of defeating the Gou'ald. Something we had not managed to do, though we had a plan, a long term one that would not have been so violent.

The door opened and the pasty white Wraith snarled at us. "Come."

"Guess I'd better," Lily answered.

We followed the creature along the darkened city corridors. From the descriptions I'd heard, I expected a city of light and beauty. Now all that was left were dead trees, cracked walls, broken windows, a thick dust covering the floor, and a stale smell. No sign the Tau'ri had ever been here.

"There!" The Wraith pointed outside almost shoving Lily through the shattered glass door.

On the deck stood a female wraith. Her bright red hair reached almost to her feet. Her white dress barely covered her thin body. She turned to us. Her nostrils flared and I sensed Lily stiffen. Huge dark eyes surveyed my host. "Where are they?" she demanded.

"Where are who?" Both of us were puzzled.

"The humans." Her voice deepened and I could feel Lily struggling against the strong will of the other. I added by support to make it easier for my host.

"Were there humans here once?" She asked the queen.

"Don't lie!"

"How can I lie when I don't know anything!" Lily had spunk when she wanted.

The female scowled. "No matter. I am hungry."

Softly she asked me, "Should I be afraid?"

'Very. Look behind you.'

Lily did. For some odd reason, the male Wraith had left us alone with the female.

'The edge, if you can,' I urged.

"Mind if I ask a few questions?" Lily put her hands on her hips and tapped her foot.

"I don't talk to food. Kneel!"

The female again tried that hypnotic voice. Because I was there, it had little effect on Lily, even if I could feel her wince by the onslaught.

"Food, hmmm. Been called a lot of things, but never that." My host walked to the railing and glanced down. '_It's a long fall, but we'd hit the water. What do you think?'_

'Good idea,' I agreed.

"Love to stay and chat, but I have people to see, things to do." She was over the railing and falling before the Wraith could respond. There was a high pitched screech above us and suddenly the sharp coldness of the water as we hit. Lily floundered briefly before her training kicked in and she swam upward. She gasped and ducked back under as weapons fired down on us.

Truthfully, I have no idea how we found our way into the underbelly of the city. There was an open hatch, Lily swam in and surfaced in an air pocket.

"That was close."

'We both knew the risks.'

"Sholan," she giggled. "Let's see if we can find a safe place to hole up."

'What if you drown?'

"Better than being eaten." Lily took a deep breath and plunged under the water again. We found a room with control panels and just above an entryway. She made for that and luckily, we found a place not filled with water.

Lily gasped as she pulled her body out of the cold liquid. "Burrr." She pushed her dark wet hair out of her face.

'You need to get into something dry.'

"You're stating the obvious." She shook her head. "I doubt we'll find anything, but you never know."

Padding along the hall, Lily would stop and peek into rooms. All sorts of equipment tantalized my curiosity, even as she continued on. "Later," she said.

Finally she stopped. "Looks like we're out of luck." She shrugged. Lily stripped out of her clothes and hung them over a machine. Rubbing her bare arms she walked constantly to keep her blood circulating and to hopefully herself warm. "What I wouldn't give for a nice blanket."

I'd seen something out of the corner of her eye. 'Look over there.'

Following my direction she found some old clothes tossed in a corner. She shook them out and sneezed. "Dusty. Oh, well." She pulled them on. They were an ugly green. "Better. Dry and warmer."

'You're tired. You need to rest.'

"Again the obvious." She took the rest of the clothes and found a corner. Piling them over her, Lily fell asleep.

I didn't. I had convinced Lily to go through the Stargate with a promise of finding help for Voyager. In my fear of what Starfleet would do to me, I forced her to flee somewhere that put us both in danger.

Now I realized what a terrible mistake that was. At the very least, I should have insisted she work with the communications equipment, primitive though it was, and made the attempt to contact Starfleet Command. I knew the coordinates of the planet we'd left and we could have sent help back to the ship.

"Sholan, hush. Let me sleep," she sleepily groused.

'Sorry, Lily.' I meant that on many levels and I knew she understood that.

"We'll talk in the morning."

When morning came, Lily roused slowly. She was cold and hungry and not happy about it. I knew that. Not to mention stiff from sleeping in such an awkward position, her back propped against the wall and not actually lying down. Her neck muscles ached. "I don't want to get up."

'I know. You must.'

She groaned and got to her feet. "Now what?"

'There were ships called jumpers here. They were mentioned in reports. We must find them.'

"Where do we start?"

'We find a way to go up.'

"How'd I know you were going to say that." Lily put her uniform back on and picked through what we found, added a thick green jacket, and a few other useful items.

It took hours to work our way upward, often having to stop and clear debris out of the way. Always we had to be alert for Wraith. I doubted they had left or even forgotten about us.

"Are those what we're looking for?" Lily glanced around a large room with what looked like a possible escape route out the ceiling.

'I think.' I could only go by what I'd read. The small pod like vessels could be the jumpers.

"Let's see if I can get inside." Approaching the nearest one, Lily managed to get it open. "Yea!" she whooped before covering her mouth. "Hope no one heard that."

She took a seat at what looked like the control panel. "Now what?"

There was something about a certain gene needed to control the ship. I could only hope she had it. The odds were not in my favor, but we had come this far. 'Try thinking it on.'

"Right." She scrunched up her face. "On."

Nothing happened. Perhaps she didn't have the needed gene. Suddenly the hatch closed.

"What the?" Lily turned in her seat.

"Move over, little girl." A black haired man pushed my host aside. "We need to leave. Now."

The jumper came alive and lifted toward the ceiling.

"Who are you?" Lily demanded as she took the other seat.

"Name's Sheppard."

"That's a strange name."

I remembered there had been a John Sheppard assigned to the Atlantis mission. The man had to be a descendant.

"I've heard the jokes." A large opening appeared overhead and he flew through it.

"My name is Lily."

"Karl."

"Where are we going?"

"New Ethos."

"Where's that?"

"You ask a lot of questions."

"Considering I just got here a day or so ago,"

"Where'd you come from?" he snapped.

"Earth."

"That's not possible."

"Why not?"

"Because."

"That's not an answer."

"It was destroyed during the war."

"What war?"

'The one I told you about.'

"Shut up, Sholan."

Karl pulled a weapon and frantically visually searched the jumper. "Who are you talking to?"

"Myself."

Essentially true. I decided I'd better keep quiet.

"How can you not know about the war?" Sheppard sounded puzzled.

"Same way I didn't know about the Stargates until we found one." She sat forward. "Let me start again. I'm a Starfleet officer assigned to the Starship Voyager that is lost in the Delta quadrant. We found a stargate and activated it. I ended up on Earth and then here."

'Lily,'

'_Not now.'_

"Hang on." Sheppard banked the jumper and punched in a set of symbols. He barely made it. Two Wraith darts fired at us. Karl smiled and sat back, lacing his fingers behind his head. His hair looked like he never combed it. "Just like the stories I heard growing up."

The jumper popped out another gate. Karl put in another set of symbols. "Never go straight in case they follow."

The sensation of cold and the stars shifted. A blue and green planet shimmered below us.

"Welcome to New Ethos."

Author's note : I'm using Ethos rather than Athos, since in IPA, the International Phonetic Alphabet, the E has an A sound.


	3. Chapter 3

The Tok'ra

Dragonlots aka Dana Bell

Chapter 3

As the jumper landed I gazed through Lily's eyes taking in what appeared to be a primitive settlement. There were hide-covered tents, cooking pots hanging on crossed poles with fires burning below them, and wooden tables with benches.

Sheppard grinned. He must have seen the shocked expression on my host's face. "This," he waved his tanned hand, "is what we want the Wraith to see." His slim fingers pressed a crystal control on the panel. The ground rumbled and opened up under the jumper pulling it down a long smooth tunnel.

From past experience, I expected the way to be dark. However, through some trick I was unfamiliar with, the walls glittered in sparkling light. There wasn't a jar as the ship came to rest at the bottom.

"Welcome." Karl got up and opened the back. He gestured. "Come on."

We followed. I could see vast underground chambers, similar to the tunnels my people had once used to hide from the gou'ald.

A woman approached us. She was tall and willowy with strawberry blonde hair she wore shoulder length. Her blue eyes took us in before turning to our rescuer. "You're late, Karl."

"Picked up a hitchhiker, Trish." He grinned at her.

Trish's face wrinkled with disgust. "What is it with you and strays?"

"That's no way to treat our new guest," another woman interjected. She was also tall though a bit stockier. Her floor length red dress whispered on the stone and I couldn't help but think how it complemented her black hair and brown eyes.

"Hi, Liz," Karl greeted. He turned to Trish. "And for your information, Dr. McKay, I'm naturally attractive."

"Oh, whatever."

I got the feeling this was an old argument between them, one that never had a solution and somehow bonded them.

Karl introduced us to Liz Jackson, the leader of their group.

"Welcome Lily." Liz gave us a warm smile.

"Lily's from Earth," Karl added.

"Earth?" Liz turned her hopeful eyes on my host.

"More recently from a starship called Voyager," Lily corrected. "We had a type of accident and ended up in the Delta Quadrant."

"I'm translating," Trish interjected, "that means you can't get back."

"We haven't found a way home yet, no. But Captain Janeway is trying."

"At least your space fleet sounds progressive." Liz slipped an arm around Karl.

I didn't miss the fond look that passed between the two.

"It took them a while," Lily confirmed. "There was a war and in the aftermath, we contacted the Vulcans. Though I actually think they contacted us."

"Vulcans?" Liz tipped her head puzzled.

"They sort of look like us only they have pointed ears and green blood."

Trish snorted. "They sound like elves."

"You've been reading Tolkien again," Karl retorted.

She straightened self importantly, or so it seemed to me. "It was my ancestor's favorite book."

"Right." Karl sent a skeptical look her way.

"Stop it, Karl," Liz said. "Why don't we give our new guest a tour of the facility, get her settled in, and then continue our discussion later."

Trish shook her head. "You're too trusting, Liz."

"I don't think Lily means us any harm, do you?"

"One day." Dr. McKay wandered off.

"She's always like that," Karl explained to us. "Come on."

We spend the next couple of hours with the couple looking over their underground city. And it was definitely a city. There were labs, a medical center manned by a someone called Keller Beckett, several gardens, for air circulation and to keep it clean Liz had explained, many sections for private quarters, a full functioning shop to keep the jumpers repaired, a fact that pleased Karl, a cafeteria, a common gathering room, and several other special function spaces.

"I'm impressed," Lily told them.

"We've had centuries to learn to hide from the Wraith." Liz sounded sad for some reason.

"And plan our counter attack," Karl added.

Liz put her hand on his arm as if to restrain him. "Right now, we're just trying to survive."

"I understand." My host did. So did I. I know my people had done many questionable things in the past in order to fight our ancient enemies.

"Here are your quarters." Liz pointed at a metal door.

"Thank you." Lily opened the door.

"We'll talk more later," Liz promised.

"I'm sure we will." Going inside the door closed after Lily. She checked to see if she was locked in. She wasn't. Liz and Karl gave her a questioning look. "Just checking."

They both smiled and seemed to understand. "Night!"

"Night." The door once again closed, my host sat on the bed.

The room wasn't much. Just four gray walls, a narrow bed, something that looked like a desk with a computer, though I had never seen such a device before, and another door, which I was guessing lead to the restroom.

"Okay, now what, Sholan?" Lily wanted to know.

'What is that?'

"What is what?"

'The picture on the wall.'

Lily got up and looked at the only adornment on the dull walls. A framed picture with several people I didn't know, all smiling, stared back at us.

"Guess I'll have to ask who they are."

That meant I'd have to wait to satisfy my curiosity.

0000000000000000000000000000000

When morning came, Karl came to fetch us. He gave us a grin. "Bet you're hungry."

"I am," Lily agreed. Hunger pains were unpleasant and I couldn't wait until she ate so I wasn't so disagreeable. Odd how an imbalance to the blood sugar level affects both of us.

"Before we go," Lily grabbed his arm and pointed to the picture. "Who are these people."

"Our ancestors," he replied curtly. He used his finger to point them out. "My ancestor, Colonel John Sheppard." The pictured man wore a uniform I recognized and had hair that didn't seem to ever be combed. "Teyla, also my ancestor. She's Athosian." Also very pretty in an exotic sort of way. "Dr. Elizabeth Weir," a dark haired woman, "Dr. Daniel Jackson". I'd met the man once. "They're both ancestors of Liz's. Dr. Rodney McKay, Dr. Katie Brown. They're responsible for Trish." The pair looked happy together and Dr. Brown's hair explained Trish's hair color. "Ronon," a black man with dreadlocks, "Major Lorne," another soldier, "Colonial Steven Caldwell," he had no hair at all. "Colonel Samantha Carter and General Jack O'Neill." I knew about both of them. They had stopped many gou'ald system lords. "Medical doctors, Dr. Carson Beckett and Jennifer Keller. Kind of an unlikely couple, but you met their descendant."

"I did yes."

'Ask him how SG1 got here?'

"Uh, how did all of them end up here?"

Karl's face shadowed. "Massive Wraith attack led by Michael." At Lily's puzzled expression he explained. "Just call him an experiment gone bad."

"Was this the war you were talking about?"

"Yeah." He headed for the door. "Don't know about you, but I'm hungry."

Lily hurried to catch up. "So, how did they end up here?"

Karl stuck his hands in his pockets. "The Deadalus came back with several VIP's aboard. Michael attacked the city, knocked out the shield, started using the darts to scoop up people. Most of the group in the picture managed to escape through the Stargate. From the sketchy records we have, we're guessing they ran for a long time before they found this tunnel system and hid here."

"How long ago was that?"

"Couple hundred years ago."

"And you've had no contact with Earth?"

"None."

"I hate to tell you this, but there are no records of any of this. Starfleet doesn't even know you exist."

"From what you said, there was a war. Records probably got lost."

"Probably." I got the feeling that Lily thought it was something else though.

"Here we are." Karl escorted us into a brightly lit room. There were tables scattered about and people sitting at them eating. He went to a long table and picked up his food.

Lily also chose some food and sat with him. Liz joined us. I hadn't noticed her when we'd come in.

"Lily was asking about our founding mothers and fathers. I gave her the short version."

Liz laughed as she gave him a quick kiss. "Meaning he didn't tell you much."

"Enough for me to get the general idea."

"We lost some of our records, or maybe they just didn't keep them. Most of what we know was passed down from generation to generation."

"So you have no idea if they tried to contact Earth before the left the city." Lily frowned, I could feel the crinkles in her face. "What city was that?"

Liz threw a look at Karl. I wondered what that meant. "Atlantis."

"Like the Greek story?"

"I don't know any Greek story, but it was city of the Ancients."

"Now in Wraith hands."

"Unfortunately."

"All we know," Karl added as he toyed with some of his food, "is that there wasn't enough power in the ZPM for them to reach Earth."

'You know something of Atlantis, Lily,' I reminded her. 'I told you.'

She spoke to our hosts to shut me up. "They wouldn't get a very warm welcome is they tried to invade. Starfleet Command would stop them."

"I guess we forget that Earth has evolved." Liz offered us an apologetic smile. "We keep thinking it is like the few records we have of it."

"We're traveling among the stars, have colonies, even allies."

"We have allies here, too."

"That's good. You know, you'd make a fine addition to the Federation."

Karl reminded us of one thing. "What about the Wraith?"

"As I said, I think Starfleet could handle them."

"But you don't know about the Stargates." Liz pushed her food away and leaned her arms on the table.

"Well I do."

"How did you find out?"

I felt Lily tense. "That's kind of a long story."


	4. Chapter 4

Author's note: As most of you know who are following my stories, I am making an effort to update two a week. The schedule is on my profile page. This is in between meeting professional writing deadlines and other obligations. Like today, 7/24/09, I helped another writer with his game launch on Twitter

The Tok'ra

Dragonlots aka Dana Bell

Chapter 4

Lily talked for a long time telling Liz and Karl about what had happened to Voyager, about the Federation, and what she'd endured after we'd gone through the Stargate.

"I would never have made it without Sholan." She sipped her water.

"Sholan?" Karl asked.

"The Tok'ra."

"We know about the Tok'ra," Liz told us. "They were allies of ours."

"I have one inside me."

"Lucky you." Karl stared hard into our eyes. "Hey, Sholan, you in there?"

Briefly I made Lily's eyes flash. "I am," I answered.

"Oh, hush," my host scolded me. "You're showing off."

I went back to sitting in the back of her mind and listening.

"Sholan may or may not know the coordinates back to where Voyager is. I have noticed he can be a bit deceptive, depending on whatever it is he wants."

"He?" Karl seemed a bit surprised. "I thought they chose the sex of their host according to what they were."

"Not always." Lily toyed with her glass. "Sometimes they really don't have a choice."

The lights flickered overhead and the room fell oddly silent. I didn't miss the concerned look passed between Liz and Karl.

"Wraith," Karl said.

"Are they attacking?" Lily was on her feet. Automatically her hand sought the phaser she no longer had.

"The village overhead," Liz explained. "We have to sacrifice a few of our people to maintain the illusion and protect us all. Mostly," and she took a deep breath, "it's the older people who don't have long to live anyway. They think of it as a more merciful way to die than of the disease or whatever ailment is killing them."

I sensed Lily's deep horror. Life in the Federation was sacred and they did all they could to make it long and full. "That's…that's…" My host had no words.

Liz gave my host a hard look. "It's what we've had to do to survive. You have no right to judge us."

'Prime directive,' I reminded her.

'_Shut up, Sholan.'_

I didn't want to, but I did.

Lily sat back down. "You're right. I don't."

The lights flickered again and vaguely we heard a high pitched whine.

Karl made a face. "Darts."

Liz reached over and took his hand.

"You'd think," he continued as if he wasn't aware of Liz's hand, "that after all these years, they would have come up with something new."

"Wraith aren't very creative." Trish McKay sat down. Her plate was loaded with meat and fruit. "They haven't changed in over ten thousand years. At least, not according the records we have."

"And they defeated the Ancients," Liz added.

"I'd like to blow them into whatever afterlife they believe in." Karl's angry lean face turned red.

"Maybe one day," Liz quietly said.

"Not soon enough," he replied. He made it sound almost like a vow, one he intended to carry out one day.

For some reason that concerned me, Lily as well. "You don't think they have the right to live?"

"You've never seen what the Wraith do to a village." Karl's eyes blazed, almost like one of us was inside him.

"I'll admit I haven't." Lily was a little frightened. I could feel her pulse starting to race.

"Maybe I'll take you topside with me when they're done. You'd get a real close up view that way."

"Karl," Liz's tone held a warning. "Don't be cruel to our guest."

"If she's going to live here, she needs to know. They both do."

'_Sholan, what should I do?'_

'Tell them you understand, even if you don't.'

"Okay, I understand. It's awful."

"It's your worst nightmare." Karl got up and left the room. After a few moments, Liz followed him.

"Wrong thing to say," Trish told us.

"Why? Under Federation law,"

"You know, Lily wasn't it?" My host nodded. "You're a long way home and your people sound very idealistic. But in this galaxy, you either kill the Wraith or they kill you." Dr. McKay glanced around as if she was afraid to be overheard. "What you don't know," she said more quietly, "is that Karl lost his sister to the Wraith a couple of years ago. The two of them were on a mission together and they got captured. Damn queen killed Sheila right in front of him. Made him watch. Karl hasn't been quite the same since."

Suddenly, I understood the implications and I knew when Lily began to understand as well. "Oh, I…I don't what to say."

"Just don't talk about them like they're people. They aren't. They're deadly predators and if you're going to survive here, you need to understand that or else, well, you'll end up being a main course for one of them." Trish got up. "I have work to do, if you'll excuse me."

"Of course."

McKay left us.

"Oh, Sholan, these poor people. How can we help them?"

I didn't have any idea.


	5. Chapter 5

**Note to Reviewers**: Unlike many on the site, I don't beg for reviews. I keep an eye on the numbers and since it's good training, plan to complete all my unfinished work. When I do get a review, I appreciate the fact someone took the time to do so. Thank you. That includes those from readers who don't like the story - as long as they are written logically, intelligently, giving good solid reasons for 'why' they don't like it and are polite/civil. However, flames, profanity, no matter how cleverly disguised, name calling, and threats only result in the reviewer being blocked and reported to the site for violation of TOS.

**Other writers:** I do beta read but am only accepting four more people. If you want someone who will help you get better and act as mentor, I'm available.

The Tok'ra

Dragonlots aka Dana Bell

Chapter 5

When Lily is sound asleep, like she is now, I sometimes reflect on my past. The memory of our glory days when we fought against the Gou'ald drifts through my mind and the carefully constructed long term plan for stopping them. We didn't know the humans were more determined and I will admit to harboring a faint anger against the SGC for their meddlesome, yet successful war they waged against the System Lords.

Unfortunately, their efforts resulted in the death of many of our number, spies they did not know of, and we were too few to begin with. Almost, they redeemed themselves when they found our queen, but she was too old and died, before any Tok'ra could be born to join us.

For a time, there was an alliance between us, but as sometimes happens, it was dissolved. I know we were not the only ones they lost. There were also the Tollen, who fell to the Gou'ald, and the Asgard, who killed themselves since their cloned bodies could no longer sustain them. They stayed with the humans the longest. Called them the Fifth race and now, in some ways, I understand why they were given the technology and history of this very old race.

Although, from the thoughts I've shared with Lily, all that was given has been lost. I wonder if the Asgard would have done the same if they had known that everything they had, everything they were, would be forgotten several hundred years later.

My host murmured in her sleep and I became very quiet so she would not wake. When her breathing once again became steady and deep, I allowed myself again to think and remember.

The face of my first host, Mernef surfaced. He'd been a sturdy Egyptian man who worked as a magician in Pharoah's court. At least, in the daylight hours that was his role. At night, he would mingle with the rebels who eventually rose up and overthrew the Gou'ald on Earth. By his instruction, and my urging, the Stargate, as the SGC called it, was buried and I'd hoped forever lost.

As time wore on and his body gave out, I chose another host. A young girl named Wati. Hers was land of struggle just to survive. Her people wandered the great plains of what would later be known as Africa. She didn't really like me much and so there came a time when we parted and I chanced upon a host traveling to the Far East.

The traveler died in route and I took refuge in a monk who found us. With him I spent much time in a monastery until the time of the communist government, which forced me to flee yet again. My host then was a missionary who retreated to England and was so terrified of me, I had to find another. He kept calling me a 'demon' voice and ordered me out in the name of his god.

I found comfort with a young assistant who was part of an archeological expedition bound for Egypt. So did I come full circle, returning to the land of desert and the burning sun. And then, in the 1920's, was the Stargate unearthed and I knew a growing horror, dread, and fear that the Gou'ald, might one day return.

Luckily, they did not find the, what had Dr. Jackson called it? Oh, yes, the DHD to control the ring and it was many, many years in the future before they discovered how to make it work.

Once during the 1940's when they lost one of their scientists through it, and then later in the 1990's when the Gou'ald, once again, returned to Earth. That is the incident that started the war and changed the galaxy forever. Children wandering out of the comfort of their birth planet before they were actually ready and thrust into relationships with alien races long before they were mature enough.

It did, however, allow me to escape and rejoin my fellow Tok'ra. At least for a time before we became so few we scattered. It seemed a silly way to protect ourselves, still, I believe it made sense at the time.

I wandered in the bodies of many hosts until I eventually found my way to the village in the Delta quadrant and then into Lily.

"Sholan, you're thinking too loud," she sleepily tells me.

"I'm sorry. Go back to sleep."

Lily grumbled, shifted for the comfort of her body and went back to sleep.

In the morning, after her usual routine, she sat on the bed and said, "So, you were in ancient Egypt."

'Yes.'

"I dreamed about it and saw very clearly your host then. He was good looking."

Sometimes, my thoughts, however unwillingly, do seep through to her subconscious mind and into her dreams.

'I did not mean to give you nightmares.'

"You didn't. I just found it very interesting." She stretched and I could feel the muscles in her body twinge and relax. "There is a lot of early history we don't really have concise records of."

'And what you do not know for certain, you use conjecture.'

She laughed. "That's a good way to put it."

'What are you planning on doing today?'

Her heart began to beat faster. "I'm going with Karl to the surface and see what damage the Wraith caused."

'I do not recommend it.' I knew full well, from reports I had read, what the results would be.

"If I ever make it home, I will be the only source of information on a possible threat to the Federation. It's my duty."

Lily felt very strongly about her duty. Normally. She did have times when she did not.

I knew she would never do anything deliberately to hurt another person, but she was not one to sit back and blindly take orders either, even if she served as a Star Fleet officer.

Slowly she got to her feet. "First, breakfast, and then I find Karl."

'You will not reconsider.'

"No. My mind is made up. Now hush up there, so I can hear myself think."

Humans have this thing about wanting to keep their thoughts private. Many of my hosts had grumbled about the same thing and hoped I didn't hold it against them when they wanted to be alone.

"Sholan," she tapped her foot. "I'm waiting."

I grew still and quiet and waited until she needed me next.


	6. Chapter 6

**Note: **Writing schedule for my updates will be disrupted over the next few weeks due to the holidays, pro deadlines, and the fact I'll be tutoring two days a week. I will do my best to keep up, but I can't guarantee the frequency.

Second, with Christian Gate Fan's permission, I will be completing 'Left Behind SG1.' CGF will be reading for continuity and will be posting the new chapters so we don't lose anyone on the alert list.

Third, please check my profile for important pro updates and to participate in my poll that will end on Dec. 31st.

Fourth, I do beta read and have three openings left, if anyone is interested.

The Tok'ra

Dragonlots aka Dana Bell

Chapter 6

I felt Lily's horror as we exited the sealed cave entrance and she saw the village for the first time. Briefly I sensed Karl's hand upon her arm before he removed it. He strode before us, a determined look on his face.

"It's," she began before shutting her mouth. I knew she wanted to vomit and she swallowed to keep down her breakfast.

Through her eyes I saw the village. Crude huts still burned. Shriveled bodies were strewn everywhere. A child sat near one of the overturned cooking pots, his arms hugging his knees, tears streaming down his dirty face. I heard muffled sobs and a few hysterical screams.

"How can they allow this?" Lily walked forward turning her head to look side to side. "How can they be so cold hearted?"

"It's necessary," Karl answered, looking up at Lily. He turned over a body.

"That's not human."

"It's a Wraith."

The creature had stark white hair and a marred pasty face. It wore a snug tight uniform over its pale skin. Several holes leaked dark blood. From one of them protruded a broken stick.

"The Federation would never allow this." Lily was becoming angry. I knew because a surge of adrenaline rushed through her system.

"It protects us."

"It's murder."

"Don't judge us," Karl barked back. "You haven't had to live here." He stalked away and knelt before the child.

'He's right you know,' I told my host.

"Shut up."

I knew she did not understand that sometimes sacrifice is necessary to survive. A lesson we Tok'ra know well.

Karl led the child toward the cave entrance. Lily spun on her heel and hurried after him.

"Do how many died?" she demanded.

"No idea. After I drop Charlie here off to the Doc, I'll do a count and bury our dead."

"I thought you said only the old and dying stayed in the village."

"Came to visit my grandpa." Charlie raised his head and glared at us. "Not against the rules."

"He's right. It isn't." Karl opened the cave entrance and we went inside.

"But to subject a child," Lily couldn't believe they could be so cruel.

"We all know what can happen," Charlie told us. "Even my younger sister understands about Wraith."

"They have to know so they'll survive." Karl turned in the direction of the medical area. "I'm taking Charlie to see Keller. Why don't you go back to your quarters?"

"Don't you presume to give me orders!"

'Lily, he's just suggesting. Calm down.'

"I think I'll go see your leader instead."

Karl shrugged. "Fine. Liz will tell you the same thing I did. Come on, Charlie."

The two went around a corner and was lost to our sight.

"Inhumane."

'Perhaps. But maybe they think the sacrifice is worth it to protect everyone who lives in this underground city.'

"You sound like you understand."

I sighed. Lily could be such a child. 'I've seen it before.'


	7. Chapter 7

Author's note: Several things have happened since I last updated. I have three stories that were accepted for professional publication. Please, see my profile page for the story names and where they'll be appearing in April/May of this year. Though I'm still waiting for the official contract my first book has been accepted as well. Possible release is 2011.

I will not be able to update regularly – much as I'd like. I'm tutoring several students as well as job hunting. It will be late March maybe Mid April before my schedule will slow down and I can write more.

Oh, and flame reviewers. Give it a rest. I know this isn't a great story so please, don't keep telling me about it. I'm not writing it for your personal approval anyway.

The Tok'ra

Dragonlots aka Dana Bell

Chapter 7

'Oh, really? Where?' Lily demanded.

I flashed images into her mind showing her the slaves who had died in ancient Egypt to overthrow the Gou'ald and then bury the Stargate. How many of the Tok'ra had willingly given their lives to stop the System Lord. Even those humans who had died with the SGC.

"Ugh." She slouched against a wall. Her heart beat hard as if my memories were more than she could bear.

'I'm sorry, Lily. The truth is sometimes an ugly thing.'

'You mean necessary.'

'Yes. You are beginning to understand.'

'Not really.' Lily straightened and I sensed when she changed her mind about going to see Liz. 'It wouldn't do me any good would it?'

'No.'

'So, Sholan.' My host darted down a side corridor than looked over her shoulder to make certain no one was watching us. 'What are we going to do?'

'Don't pull a…" I quickly searched her mind for the name, 'a Captain Kirk. You can do nothing to change anything.'

'But I'm betting back on Atlantis there's a com unit that will put us in contact with Earth.'

'Would you endanger all of Earth just to satisfy your own sense of right and wrong?'

'These people can't keep on living this way. One day the Wraith may figure out where they're hiding and,' she paused, 'kill them all.'

'It is possible.' I tried another tack. 'What about the Prime Directive? Captain Janeway lived by it.' I had seen her example and admired the strong will woman.

'She isn't here. We are.'

'And with no way to return.'

'Oh, I'll bet there's another Stargate around here somewhere.'

'You're going to go looking for one.'

'And when I find it I promise we're going to get out of here and find some help for these people.'

'Those on Earth don't even remember the Atlantis mission.'

'There have to be records somewhere. Like in the old Archives we're never allowed to access.'

'Wasn't much of Earth's history lost in the wars?' I seemed to recall there had been some wars in between the Stargate era and the rise of Starfleet.

Lily snorted. 'Not everything was _lost._' The last word she put a special emphasis on and I suddenly wondered how many more secrets she was managing to keep from me. She was the first of my hosts who had done that.

'Don't do anything that will endanger the people here.'

'Not to worry. I know what I'm doing.'

'Are you sure?'

'Shut up, Sholan. I have some plans to make and I don't want you interfering.'

'Lily,' I warned.

She groaned and headed back toward her quarters. 'I know what I'm doing. I'm a trained Starfleet officer so would you trust me?'

'And I ask the same, trust me. Your idea is not a good one.'

'We have to do something to get this lost Earth colony found and reunited with the Federation.'

'And the Wraith?'

'I think any starship could handle them.'

From the memories I had, I was no so certain. I knew how many Earth ships had nearly been destroyed trying.

'Those old clumsy things? No wonder they couldn't.'

'And what makes you think a starship can handle a Wraith one?'

'Because I know Federation history and who've they defeated in the past.'

'Barely, if your memories are correct.' I tried to reason with my host. 'Lily, you can't be sure that the two ships are a match for each other. The Wraith are old and undefeated.' I used my last line of defense. 'They even beat the Ancients.'

I sensed for the first time doubt on Lily's part. 'Maybe I should do some more research.'

'That would very wise,' I agreed.


End file.
